It can be insanely frustrating when you’re trying your best at a game but still failing to make any progress. Experienced gamers will know that skills don’t come easily and that games need to be played for a long period of time before you can master all of the mechanics and develop a game-winning strategy. Knowing the different variants of the game you are playing and learning the basics, can really help you to develop a winning strategy. However, if you’re a novice gamer who aspires to improve their gaming skills and take themselves to the next level (pun intended), there are ways to optimise your gaming performance.

Knowledge is Power

One of the most important factors when it comes to gaming is being able to understand the game and the moves that people make. Learning about the game is vital if you want to become a professional, so never hesitate to read guides or gaming magazines along with watching tutorials and game walkthroughs. Online forums are often great sources of information when it comes to gaming advice. However, it’s important to browse a range of fan-made guides as since they’re not made by experts, it could provide you with misleading information. All of these sources combined will help you get a deeper understanding of the game and how different people play it. With more extensive knowledge about the game and the genre itself, you can start to develop your own strategy and find out what gameplay works best for you.

If playing strategic games such Hearthstone or Gwent, it will be highly beneficial for you to explore the current Meta for those games. If you’re unsure on what that means, the Meta is simply a database explaining what mechanics are currently being used the most and which are doing the best out of all of the others. So, on card games such as Hearthstone, the Meta will explain what deck is currently the favourite amongst players, providing you with information as to how people are playing it and why they’re gaining a lot of success from it. To keep all of your knowledge stored in one place, write a guide of your own filled with the strategies and mechanics that work best for you, and that way, you can adapt your gameplay and optimise it to compliment your best gaming qualities.

Taking Advantage of Demos

Gaming can be an expensive hobby with consoles costing hundreds of pounds along with an extensive variety of DLC’s (downloadable content) for each game. However, demos are an excellent way to enjoy a game with the expense, but to also practice your skills. If there is a brand new game being released into the industry, it is likely that it will release beta or possibly alpha opportunities to the public. This will allow the company to gain feedback over what aspects of the game are good and which areas need improvement, allowing them to perfect the final product. However, these demos provide novices with the perfect opportunity for practice, and also a head start over everyone else. A lot of gaming success comes from experience; therefore if you begin playing a game from the very beginning, you can have this experience over other players, making you a better gamer over them.

Adopt a Positive Attitude

Gamers are often perceived by society as evil, disruptive teenagers, and whilst this stereotype is upsetting to hear about, there is a ring of truth to it. Every gamer will have come across a raging opponent who takes no responsibility over their actions. But, this foul attitude will not make you a better gamer in the long-term. If you find yourself blaming others for a mistake that you’ve made, or make excuses for any bad decisions that you’ve made in-game, you need to change your gaming attitude. Playing a game should provide you and your peers with a thrilling experience, but adopting a negative attitude spoils everybody’s gameplay.

So, to improve on your gameplay, learn from any mistakes that you make and act on them to make yourself play better in the future. It’s important to keep a psychologically healthy state when playing games as it will help you to persevere and take on a positive outlook about anything that goes wrong throughout the game that you’re playing. If you’re feeling stressed and angry about a gaming situation, take a break and cool off before you return, otherwise you will grow frustrated and your gameplay will reflect this.

Enter Tournaments

It sounds daunting and incredibly scary, but entering tournaments are a great way to put your skills to the test and gain valuable competitive gaming experiences. In the best-case scenario, you could enter a tournament and win, providing you will spectacular cash prizes. Of course, no one should enter a competition with the expectation of winning money, and if you’re a beginner gamer, the priority should be to test your skills and learn from other professionals about how they’ve become successful in the gaming industry.

Maintaining Balance

As tempting as it can be to lock yourself away and play your games all day, it’s massively important to maintain a balance within your life if you want to become a better gamer. Of course, you will need to spend valuable time testing the waters and playing a variety of games to learn where your strengths and weaknesses lay, but you also need to spend a considerable amount of time away from the console and computer and function well in reality. You may have heard of people quitting their jobs to become a full-time gamer, but staying in a stable job that provides you with a regular substantial income is the perfect way to balance your lifestyle.

You also need to make plenty of time to see friends and families, as maintaining these relationships will be crucial for your mental wellbeing. And, as previously discussed, a healthy mind will reflect in your gameplay, as you’ll be in a greater mind-set to adjust your strategies and make any tweaks to optimise your gaming performance. Therefore, becoming a better gamer doesn’t rely on buying the best, innovative equipment or becoming friends with the most successful gamer in the world. All you need to become a better game is balance, tolerance and a healthy frame of mind.